Inn Overlord: Reincarnated with Enhancement Magic, Now Worshipped as a Divine Messenger! - Chapter 16

Seraph’s Perspective

─Did you not hear what David and I were talking about earlier!?

We agreed not to kill monsters that weren’t hostile toward us. I was sure I had said that, but Luka ignored me and killed one of the army ants—or so I thought. No, it was still alive.

─Is Luka holding back?
─It did seem like it might turn hostile later, but…
─Wait! That is…

Looking closer, I saw that the army ant was trying to attack a certain monster—a griffon, with the head of an eagle and the body of a lion. Griffons are classified as A+ in difficulty to defeat, yet there was one here in the middle section of the Cursed Forest. Why? Something must be happening in the forest right now.

─But there’s only one griffon here… Normally, they move in groups…

That thought crossed my mind, but this griffon was covered in wounds, completely exhausted. More than that, just looking at it made a vision appear in my mind.

It was another memory from my past life.

Because of my fanatically religious parents, I also believed in their god. But one day, I was beaten by a school bully who told me there was no such thing as God. While he hit me over and over, he mocked me, saying, “Pray to your god to save you.” Even when I was on the brink of death, I kept waiting for God’s hand to reach out to me. But God never came to save me. I became an outcast at school.

Griffons live in groups. If one is here alone, in such a battered state, it must have been cast out. Looking at that lonely griffon, I saw my past self reflected in it.

As I approached the griffon, I crossed through the army ants and called out to Luka.

“Hold them off! And don’t kill them like before!”

“Got it!”

It was possible that the army ants were only aggressive because the griffon was in their territory.

David chased after me from behind and shouted,

“What the hell are you doing… Wait, is that a griffon!?”

Even David, as experienced as he was, was shocked to encounter a griffon so unexpectedly. I hurried closer, hoping to heal its injuries, but the griffon suddenly released an immense magical force.

The magic whipped up a wind that became razor-sharp blades, attacking us. Luka and I dodged, but the army ants were sliced clean in half. The wind blades then turned toward David, cutting through the air. I tried to enhance his body’s strength, but I wouldn’t make it in time.

─Damn it!

Just as the wind blade was about to cut David in two, a wolf-like monster leaped out from the shadows and tackled him aside.

“Whoa!!?”

David barely managed to escape harm, but then the wolf—Vilkas—opened its jaws and lunged at him.

“Ahhhhhh!!”

David screamed, but instead of attacking, Vilkas started licking his cheek. It seemed to be the same Vilkas we had saved earlier. However, it looked much bigger—at least one or two sizes larger than before.

─Was this because of my enhancement magic?

Now wasn’t the time to think about that. I spoke up.

“See? It was worth saving him, right?”

Covered in slobber, David hesitantly responded.

“Y-yeah…”

We had avoided danger for now, but the problem wasn’t over. The griffon that attacked us was still here.

I turned to face it once again. The griffon groaned in pain, thrashed around, and started clawing and pecking at itself.

Suddenly, black snake-like patterns writhed across its body, wrapping around it like they were strangling it.

“This is…”

I muttered, and David answered,

“Mind control?”

“Mind control!?”

“Yeah, but who would try to control an A+ ranked monster like this…?”

As David seriously analyzed the situation, Vilkas placed its front paws on his shoulders and stood on its hind legs. It was a cute sight, but I didn’t have time to pay attention to that. I stepped closer to the suffering griffon.

“Seraph!?”

“Woof!”

David and Vilkas called out in concern, but I raised a hand, signaling that I was fine.

I got close enough to touch the griffon. Realizing what I was doing, the griffon gathered more magic power.

I called to Luka,

“Luka! Take care of David and Vilkas!”

“Got it!”

But the griffon’s magic was focused solely on me. Countless wind blades, like a flower storm, came at me. I strengthened my body with magic, boosting my defense and healing ability.

“Seraph!?”

“Seraph-sama!?”

Ignoring the worried shouts from David and Luka, I took deep cuts across my body, healing myself as I pressed forward and touched the griffon.

“It’s okay… I’m your ally…”

I placed my hand on the griffon’s body and used mental reinforcement magic. The griffon gradually calmed down. The black snake-like markings faded away until they disappeared completely. Next, I used magic reinforcement and body enhancement to heal its wounds.

Realizing I wasn’t an enemy, the griffon gently licked my bloodied cheek in gratitude.

Then, it began to glow.

Right… I had cast the same three enhancement spells as I did on Luka. Just like before, my consciousness started to fade. I had used too much magic. As my vision blurred, I heard David and Luka’s worried voices, the sound of running footsteps, and a distant rumble like an earthquake.

I lost consciousness.

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David’s Perspective

My one good leg and my lousy prosthetic both trembled in the presence of the wounded, stray griffon. I had survived countless deadly encounters as an adventurer, but I never expected to face this kind of danger after retiring.

─Damn it!

Even wounded, an A+ ranked monster was incredibly powerful. Only an A-rank adventurer could stand a chance. If that Vilkas Seraph saved hadn’t jumped in, I would have been dead.

Yet Seraph approached the griffon.

“Seraph!?”

“Woof!”

Seraph waved his hand, signaling us not to worry. He moved even closer, and the griffon gathered magic once again.

Seraph told Luka,

“Luka! Take care of David and Vilkas!”

“Got it!”

But the immense magic was only directed at Seraph. Countless wind blades attacked him.

─That’s an advanced spell—Cyclone!?

“Seraph!?”

“Seraph-sama!?”

Seraph’s armor and clothes were shredded like paper. The sound of flesh tearing and bl00d splattering rang in my ears.

“No way…”

I fell to my knees in despair.

─Is this a nightmare?

But then, I heard Seraph’s voice.

“It’s okay… I’m your ally…”

I looked at Seraph. He was still alive, but covered in bl00d. The eerie black stripes that had wrapped around the griffon were fading.

I watched as the griffon’s wounds disappeared before my eyes.

Realizing that it had hurt Seraph, the griffon gently licked his face.

Then, the griffon began to glow. It shifted from its four-legged stance to a kneeling posture.

The creature that had been a griffon transformed into a human.

Seeing this, a thought crossed my mind.

—Seraph is a messenger of the gods…

Seraph suddenly collapsed.

“Seraph!?”

“Seraph-sama!!”

“Woof!!”

We rushed to catch him before he hit the ground, but before we could, the creature that had been a griffon caught him first.

Now in the form of a woman, she was completely naked, making it difficult to know where to look. Even so, I remained cautious.

—Is she a friend or foe?

She had long ash-gray hair that covered one of her eyes. She looked at us with her uncovered eye and spoke.

“Are you this person’s attendants?”

I was too shocked to answer, but Luka spoke up.

“Yes!”

Holding Seraph carefully in both arms, she asked again.

“This person… You called him Seraph. That is his name, correct?”

This time, I answered.

“Y-yeah, that’s right.”

“Ah, Seraph-sama… I have caused you so many wounds…”

Regret filled her voice as she continued speaking to us.

“Please, allow me to serve alongside you all. I will be useful… No, I swear I will make myself useful!”

Just as we hesitated to answer, a rumbling sound echoed through the forest.

Looking in the direction of the noise, we saw a massive cloud of dust rising, covering the forest.

The army ants from earlier were returning in a swarm, charging straight toward us.